Wednesday, January 25, 2012

Heart Condition

Matthew 12:7 I want you to show mercy, not offer sacrifices. (NLT)

At 1:30 a. m. I was awakened by my heart racing. After an expensive trip to the emergency room followed by a visit to the cardiologist, I was diagnosed with tachycardia, given medicine and taught several techniques to reestablish the rhythm when and if it happened again. While aggravating, the condition doesn’t affect my lifestyle and is not seriously dangerous. But the spiritual condition of my heart is more important, and this is what Jesus references. Those he talked with were very efficient at obeying the letter of the law but missed the spirit. They abstained from work on the Sabbath but wouldn’t help a robbed half dead man lying beside the road because he was a different race and they were in a hurry. Obeying rules is important, but occasionally they interfere with our higher calling. If a drowning person was doing so in a pond posted “No Swimming,” would you dive in and save them?